Let's Start Over
by Happy Lilac
Summary: Japan experiences a horrible tragedy, causing both he and America to learn something about themselves. Way too short, I apologize. Not a romance, rated T to be safe.
1. Chapter 1

**My first story, whoo! To all the friends who I pushed to read this, thanks so much! BTW, this is NOT a romance, and I do NOT own Hetalia (although that would be pretty awesome :P ) Enjoy!**

Chapter 1

Kiku wandered among the coastal ruins of his country. He knew he should probably be at a shelter helping his people, but how could he help them when he could barely even think? He still hardly accepted what had happened. He could hardly believe the devastation.

An earthquake had just ravaged his beloved home. It, along with the tsunamis it created, had changed the beautiful coast of his country into a scene of despair. The quake had occurred several days ago, but Kiku was still beside himself. He could still remember the terror. He had ushered some people into the safety of a strong office building. He remembered the people's screams, remembered looking out the buildings window, watching countless buildings fall, watching countless homes get swept away.

As Kiku walked along in a zombie-like trance, he saw the remains of once beautiful homes and gardens, all of them collapsed or crushed. The remains of the dead, too, were present. No one had come to remove them, the attention was being focused on the living. As he continued trudging down the dusty, rubbish-strewn path, disturbing sights filled Kiku's eyes. The body of a young girl, surrounded by her own blood. A thin stray dog, chewing a human femur. A hand sticking out of a pile of rubbish.

Suddenly, Kiku heard a throaty growl come from up ahead of him. He looked up to see a white cat in the middle of the road. It's fur was covered with soot and blood, it's green eyes were dull and cloudy. Looking closer, Kiku could see the animal's ribs.

He almost smiled. He loved cats; they were a symbol of good luck. He knew the soft hope he felt was foolish, but couldn't help but feel it anyway. Kiku approached the cat, being careful not to scare it. The creature did nothing. It simply stared back at him. Suddenly, the cat fell on its side onto the ground.

Kiku immediately ran to the fallen animal. It was a horrible sight. The cat was panting heavily, as though it was struggling to breathe. Foamy drool dripped from the cat's mouth. Kiku's heart sank. In a normal situation, he may have been able to help the struggling animal. But not after an earthquake. Kiku helplessly watched the creature's life slip away. After several minutes, the cat's jaw hung open and it's eyes became glassy. The poor thing was finally gone.

Until he saw the cat die, the earthquake had left Kiku numb, detached. After the quake had passed, he'd subconsciously shut off his emotions to prevent himself from breaking down. But this was too much. Seeing the one thing since the quake that had brought him joy, the one thing that had given him hope die right before his eyes, Kiku's already broken heart shattered. And there, before the body of the dead cat, the wise, powerful, resilient nation dropped his head into his hands and began to cry.

**I know, it's depressing. There'll be more chapters, hopefully soon, 'cause I have April vacation right now :D. Please review!**


	2. Chapter 2

**Wow, so didn't expect so much feedback! I made this one longer, like I promised :P I still don't own Hetalia, still wish I did. Oh, btw, if you seriously cried or almost cried over Japan, you'll probably bawl your eyes out this chapter. Just a warning :/**

When Alfred first heard about the earthquake, he didn't know what to think.

He couldn't take his eyes off the news reports. He watched the same bits of footage over and over, the homes being swept off their foundation, the buildings falling, the Japanese people shouting and crying.

Alfred still wasn't sure of what to do, even though the quake had happened several days ago. He didn't know whether or not Kiku even wanted help. Kiku had always been a strong, prideful, self-resilient nation. That, and it'd been a long time since Alfred and Kiku had even seen each other outside of the world meetings.

Alfred honestly didn't know if he'd even be of much use to Kiku. The earthquake footage was reminding him of a time when his own resolve had been tested as he watched the falling buildings…

Falling buildings…

Almost ten years had passed since that day, a blink of an eye to Alfred. It could have happened yesterday for how well he remembered it.

By chance he had been walking past the World Trade Center when he saw a plane smash into one of the towers. He'd been frozen to the spot as people gathered, firemen and ambulances arrived, the buildings began to collapse.

He remembered the feeling. The feeling that that he couldn't breathe. The feeling that the world was falling apart. The feeling of helplessness, of only being able to stand there and watch the buildings fall.

After feeling like he was invincible for so long, the accident shook Alfred to the core. Despite the other countries reaching out to him, it took days until he could force a smile, weeks until he stopped having nightmares, months until he finally felt like his old self again.

What Kiku was going through was definitely not the same, Alfred knew. But he was sure that the feelings were the same.

He suddenly wondered what Kiku was doing, whether he was assisting the relief experts or just being depressed.

Alfred felt a pang of guilt as he had that thought. "Being depressed"… that's all _he_ had done after 9/11. While the government stepped up to the plate, increasing safety measures, reassuring the people, Alfred had been moping, doing nothing to help.

Well, this time would be different.

He had to help Kiku. Sure they weren't friends, but how could anyone just sit back and let the country suffer?

Alfred called up Red Cross, and ended up arranging for the organization to send helicopters with food and medical supplies over. At the last minute before he ended the call, Alfred also arranged for a helicopter to pick him up and take him to Japan, too.

He said he wanted to make sure everything went well, but he mostly wanted to make sure that Kiku was doing alright.

He thought about calling Kiku and telling him that help was on the way, but he decided not to. _Better let him be surprised_, Alfred figured.

It took a long while for the helicopter that was to take him along to arrive. As he waited, a thought came to him.

Kiku had never really needed help before, had he? Alfred couldn't remember the last time Kiku's country had been in trouble…

Oh wait, yes he could.

"Hiroshima." The word stumbled out of Alfred's mouth in a hushed whisper before he could stop it. He smacked himself in the face, angry with himself.

_How could I be so dense?_ He thought. _How could I forget that?_

Alfred remembered his thoughts on dropping the bomb on the Japanese city. "I just want to end the war," he kept saying. But what a selfish, inhumane way to end a war.

Hiroshima had been bombed for three reasons in Alfred's mind: One, to end the war. Two, every other major Japanese city had already been bombed. And three, he'd wanted to test out the damage capacity of the bomb.

Looking back, Alfred was ashamed of himself. Using a beautiful city, filled with innocent people, as a test site for an atomic bomb? Unthinkable. But Alfred had done it.

_Why would Kiku accept my help after that?_ He wondered. _He probably hates me right now._

Alfred wondered if he should call the Red Cross and tell them he'd changed his mind on going along. But as soon as he had that thought, the chopper appeared over his head and slowly touched down.

"No turning back now," he sighed quietly as he stared at the chopper. He squared his shoulders as he approached the helicopter. He had to do this.

He _was_ the hero, after all.

**Sorry if I made you cry! –hands out tissues- There'll probably only be one more chapter after this, which is NOT so depressing, so bear with me! :D**


	3. Chapter 3

**Last chapter! :D Don't worry; this one isn't depressing, it's actually very uplifting! Enjoy!**

Kiku sighed as he wiped his tired hand across his forehead. He'd finally managed to pull himself together (more or less) and had been assisting the relief efforts for several days now. He was taking a break for a moment and trying to regain his bearings.

Because he was one of the only people around with medical skills, he was working in a small shed that had been converted into a makeshift hospital stitching up wounds that were too severe for a simple bandage. Unfortunately, there were no anesthetics available, so everyone he stitched up was awake and feeling everything.

Some people screamed in pain as they were being treated. Others jumped every time a stitch went in. Others still stayed quiet and motionless, only letting a grimace of pain cross their face.

After they were stitched up, the wounds were bandaged and they were given a small amount of food. Then they were allowed to search the facility for loved ones. Those with more serious injuries were moved to a bed to recover, and given a larger amount of food.

Resources were dwindling fast, and Kiku knew they'd soon run out. He also knew that the situation was similar at other rescue stations. Other countries were readying to assist, but their preparations were taking too long. His country needed help now.

Kiku stepped outside the shelter for a moment, trying to calm his worried mind. He sat on a dusty rock and rested his chin on his hand. He watched more people pile into the already crowded shelter. Some were alone, holding an arm or limping. Others were clamoring for help, supporting a severely injured friend. He could hear babies crying, some out of pain, some out of hunger, some out of fear.

Kiku really didn't want to go back in there. He didn't want to admit it to himself, but a deep-down part of him was terrified, scared of all the horror. He didn't want the responsibility of saving these people, because he knew that he couldn't save anyone.

_I've always been such a powerful nation,_ he thought. _Why do I feel so helpless?_

He was on the verge of a breakdown when he heard something loud overhead. He looked up and saw several helicopters bearing down, each one with a red cross plastered on its side. Hope stirred in Kiku's heart.

Several people came out of the shelter, caretakers and victims alike, to watch the helicopters land. It took several minutes before the choppers were quiet. Then, Red Cross workers emerged, carrying boxes of medicine, food, blankets, and more. The people began shouting and crying with joy. Kiku suppressed a sob of his own. The caretakers at the shelter scurried out to take some of the boxes, and Kiku was about to join them when a familiar figure stepped out of one of the choppers.

"America…?" asked Kiku as the younger nation approached him, grinning broadly. "What are you doing here?"

"Being the hero, what else?" Alfred replied happily. "I thought if I was gonna help you, I might as well come along. I mean, you could use the help." He looked around at the fallen buildings surrounding them.

Kiku swallowed his pride and humbly responded, "Yes, we do need help. The other countries have been taking a long time to get their relief effort together."

"It was a snap for me!" Alfred said loudly, almost boasting. "I just called up the Red Cross all like 'Hey, let's help Japan!' and they were like 'Sure!' "

Japan laughed slightly at Alfred's simple explanation. He suddenly realized that this was the first time he'd laughed since the earthquake.

"I mean, I know it's rough." Alfred went on, becoming uncharacteristically serious. "I've… I've had times where I was…scared." Kiku nodded. He knew what Alfred was talking about.

"And…" Alfred continued, still serious, "I've made…some mistakes…that it's…it's about time I made up for." Alfred looked down as he said this. Kiku was astonished. Alfred had never taken responsibility for that day so long ago. It was a silent truth that the young nation regretted it, but he'd never truly owned up to it.

Kiku smiled. "You're doing a good job so far." He said softly. Alfred looked up and grinned at Kiku, who gestured toward some boxes that still hadn't been moved into the shelter.

"How about we take care of these?" He asked. Alfred nodded and they both walked to the boxes.

Kiku knew that this wasn't the end of the tragedy. It was only the beginning. But he knew that this help was going to give his people a push to keep going, as it did for him. The road would be long, he knew, full of setbacks and hardships. He knew that complete recovery would probably take years. But step by step, a little at a time, he knew his country _would_ recover. And Kiku would keep going until it did.

**See, told you this would be uplifting! Stay tuned for another Hetalia fanfic. I have many ideas… :P**


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